It is with sadness but huge thanks that we say goodbye to our Chair Dr. Gillian Rice, who is stepping down after 7 years. Gillian, a Bristol-based GP, joined Artlift’s Board of Trustees having witnessed the positive impact of creative activities on patients participating in Arts & Health projects with which she had been involved.
Gillian has supported the charity through changes in structure and in executive leadership and overseen strategic development and a strengthening relationship with Artlift’s primary investor, NHS Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board.
She played an important role in development of the Creative Health sector when in May 2015, as Chair of Artlift, she attended the House of Lords to speak at a roundtable of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Arts, Health & Wellbeing. She urged greater investment in and recognition of the power of arts and creativity to boost health and wellbeing as she felt at the time there was:
‘…a great danger of Arts of Prescription programmes being seen as a kind of poor relation, the Cinderella service, compared with mainstream mental health services within the NHS’.
Since then, there has been significant investment into social prescribing and, in NHS Gloucestershire, very welcome sustained investment into Arts on Prescription service providers.
Artlift is now looking for a new Chair of the Board – an exciting opportunity as the organisation strengthens its cooperative working with local and national Creative Health providers.
The charity continues to co-produce new approaches to Arts on Prescription for adults living with mental health and/or chronic pain challenges, and to develop important new Workplace Wellbeing, consultancy and training services. Artlift also raises awareness and brings health professionals and patients together through Creative Health projects such as Macmillan and Yes to Life supported Flourish Magazine, published by and for people living with or beyond cancer.
If you are interested in the Chair role, and supporting us to continue to extend reach and impact, please click here for more information and to download an application form. If you have any queries or need to apply in a different way, please contact Executive Director Cath Wilkins (cath@artlift.org / 07917 796 959).